Monday, January 23, 2012

This was supposed to be a digital comp painting for an acrylic piece I was working on for a charity auction. It didn't pass muster though. The idea comes from a dream I had. While it has the feel I wanted, it doesn't have enough story within the frame to warrant taking further.

I think good illustration is like a good story. An illustration that works should hold the viewer's attention and answer the classic who what where when why how questions. Right off the bat, there are problems with this comp. Who is this falling person? Are they falling or flying? Why are they glowing? Are they a man or woman? Girl? Boy? Human? When is this? Where is this? Too many unanswered questions and I find that it's purely an image with a "feeling" and not much else.

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Static was the culmination of a few short stories I have played with over the last couple years. I wanted to do a whole story from beginning to end in some format on the blog, but I procrastinated out of fear and laziness. During one of my random sketch doodles I found an image that seemed to work with the premise of two characters lost in a snowy, dangerous world. The other posts sprung from there and borrowed elements from my other stories. The goal with Static was merely to tell a story using clear visuals and minimal dialogue. I am very glad that I have the whole thing up here and done, and I know I want to play with more ideas soon. I still haven't dialed in how much writing I need versus how much I need to show visually, and I still have to play with things like narrative voice.

I really appreciate people's encouraging comments along the way. Thanks everyone! It's great to know someone is watching. Now, on to the next idea!

Thursday, January 05, 2012

CAPTAIN, YOUR FRIEND AND THE OTHERS HAVE GIVEN ME STRENGTH. THEIR ENERGIES FEED MY OWN. I WAS TETHERED DEEP IN THE EARTH FOR EONS, BUT WITH THE LAST SMALL ENERGY FROM YOU I SHALL PULL FREE. CONSIDER YOURSELF HONORED.

"So it was you who wiped all the crew down here out? And what, you 'absorbed their souls'? What did you do to Jensen?!"